193rd Infantry Brigade (United States)

Infobox Military Unit
unit_name= 193rd Infantry Brigade


caption=193rd Infantry Brigade shoulder sleeve insignia
dates= 1922-1946
1962-1994
Jan 07-present
country= United States
allegiance=
branch= U.S. Army
type=
role= Training
size= Brigade
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garrison= Fort Jackson
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motto=“No Ground to Give”
colors=
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march= Pathfinder of Panama, by John Philip Sousa
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battles=
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battle_honours= Central Europe, Operation Just Cause
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identification_symbol_label=Distinctive Unit Insignia
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The 193rd Infantry Brigade was originally constituted in the Organized Reserves on 24 June 1922 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 193rd Infantry Brigade and assigned to the 97th Division. The brigade was reorganized and reconstituted in February 1942 as the 97th Reconnaissance Troop, 97th Division. In February 1943 the Troop was ordered to active military service and organized at Camp Swift, Texas. Reorganized and redesignated October 1945 as the 97th Mechanized Cavalry Reconnaissance Troop.

World War II

The 97th Reconnaissance Troop landed at Le Havre, France, 2 March 1945 as part of the 97th Infantry Division. The Division crossed the German border west of Aachen and took up a defensive position along the west bank of the Rhine River opposite Düsseldorf, engaging in patrolling. The division then entered the battle of the Ruhr pocket, crossing the Rhine near Bonn and taking up a position on the southern bank of the Siege River. It crossed that river against light resistance and fought a street-to-street engagement in Siegburg. Pushing on toward Düsseldorf through difficult terrain and heavy resistance in densely wooded areas, the Division captured Solingen. Düsseldorf fell on the next day and the Ruhr pocket was eliminated. 97th Reconnaissance Troop played a vital role in the Ruhr campaign. Besides its customary reconnaissance and patrolling duties, the unit once was charged with protecting the entire left flank of the division.

Moving to protect the left flank of the Third Army on its southern drive, the 97th Division took Cheb, Czechoslovakia and attacked the Czechoslovak pocket near Widen, Germany. It had advanced to Konstantinovy Lazne, Czechoslovakia, when it received the cease-fire order on 7 May 1945. The Division left for Le Havre, 16 June 1945, for redeployment to the Pacific, arriving at Cebu, Philippine Islands, 16 September, and then sailed to Japan for occupation duty, arriving at Yokohama 23 September.

97th Mechanized Reconnaissance Troop inactivated March 1946 in Japan. (Organized Reserves redesignated 25 March 1948 as the Organized Reserve Corps; redesignated 9 July 1952 as the Army Reserve.) Converted and redesignated July 1962 as Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 193rd Infantry Brigade and relieved from assignment to the 97th Infantry Division.

Panama

In 1961, after the aborted Bay of Pigs invasion and rumors of Soviet assistance to Cuba, Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara decided to bolster available Army forces in the Caribbean area. The Army replaced the battle group in the Panama Canal Zone with the 193d Infantry Brigade, which was activated on 8 August 1962. In December 1989, after more than a year of diplomatic tension between Panama and the United States, President George Bush ordered the invasion of Panama, codenamed Operation Just Cause, to depose its general and de facto leader Manuel Noriega. The missions of the 193d IN BDE (L) Task Force Bayonet) were to isolate and clear the Commandancia, seize and secure the Panama Defense Force’s Engineer Battalion compound and portions of Fort Amador, seize the Balboa and Ancon DENI (Panama’s National Defense of Investigations) and Balboa Department of Transportation (DNTT) stations, protect U.S. housing areas, and protect critical defense sites and areas. The Brigade consisted of:
*1st Battalion, 508th Infantry (Airborne)
*5th Battalion, 87th Infantry
*4th Battalion, 6th Infantry, detailed to Panama from the 5th Infantry Division(Mechanized), at Fort Polk, LA.On 20 December 1989, the executive order was given to put Operation Just Cause into effect. On 21 December 1989, the 1-508th, known as Task Force Red Devil (TF Red Devil), cleared the Amador Yacht Club, Amador Marina, La Boca, and the American housing Area. After conducting a relief in place with the Rangers, TF Red Devil conducted numerous follow-on missions including perimeter security and acted as a Quick Reaction Force (QRF) for any contingencies, which included conducting reconnaissance for possible weapons caches, mine fields, and other violations of the cease fire.

Meanwhile, TF Wildcat (5-87th IN) attacked and seized critical objectives in Panama City to include the Balboa DENI ("Direccion Especial Nacional de Investigaciones", the PDF's investigative branch, the DNTT ("Direccion Nacional de Transporte Terrestre", which served as the Headquarters of the National Police), the Ancon DENI, and the PDF Engineer complex on Albrook AFB. Each of these objectives lay astride the key lines of communication into the center of Panama city. In the days days following the initial assault, TF 5-87 conducted stability operations and was involved in the security of the Santa Felipe, Santa Anna, El Marana, and Chorillo sections of the city. During the remainder of the operation, TF Wildcat secured key sites in Panama City and reacted to security and civil military tasking.

Task Force Gator, task-organized with the 4-6th IN(-) and 5th Infantry Divion (Mechanized), helped clear the Commandancia and conducted security missions at the Papal Nunciatura, Quarry Heights, Balboa Heights, Diablo Heights, and Ft. Amador, which continued until the task force was relieved on 22 Jan.

With La Comandancia in US hands and reinforcement routes blocked, the possibility of organized resistance by the PDF collapsed. On 3 January 1990, Manuel Noriega surrendered. Units began returning to the states as early as 20 January 1990.

193rd Infantry Brigade however, remained in Panama and continued to provide a military presence. On 14 October, 1994 after more than 32 years of providing ground defense for Panama, 193rd Infantry Brigade was honored as the first major unit to inactivate in accordance with the Panama Canal Treaty of 1977, treaty implementation plan, which mandated U.S. Forces withdrawal from Panama by December 1999.

Today

On 31 January 2007, the 193rd Infantry Brigade was reactivated at Fort Jackson, South Carolina with the mission to conduct basic combat training for new entrants to the Army.

*Headquarters & Headquarters Company
*1st battalion, 13th Infantry
*2nd battalion, 13th Infantry
*3rd battalion, 13th Infantry
*2nd battalion, 60th Infantry
*3rd battalion, 60th Infantry4th Battalion, 20th Infantry

Campaign Participation credit

*World War II
**Central Europe
**Combat Infantry Brigade - streamer
*Operation Just Cause
**Panama

References

* [http://www.jackson.army.mil/193rdBDE/history.htm/ "The history of the 193rd Infantry Brigade"]
* [http://www-cgsc.army.mil/carl/resources/csi/content.asp#brigade "The Brigade: A History, Its Organization and Employment in the US Army"]